A liquid crystal display device is incorporated in various devices such as a television receiver, an in-vehicle display such as a car navigation device, and a mobile device such as a notebook personal computer or a mobile phone.
For example, in a liquid crystal display device of a twisted nematic (TN) mode and an optically compensated bend (OCB) mode, an electric field formed between a counter-electrode provided on an upper substrate and a pixel electrode provided on a lower substrate controls the alignment direction of a liquid crystal molecule included in a liquid crystal layer which is held between both substrates.
Also, in a liquid crystal display device which utilizes an in-plane switching (IPS) mode, both a counter-electrode (COM electrode, in this case) and a pixel electrode are provided on either substrate to control the alignment direction of a liquid crystal molecule included in a liquid crystal layer by a lateral electric field formed between both electrodes (including an oblique electric field and a fringe electric field). A liquid crystal display device which utilizes a fringe-field switching (FFS) mode as one aspect of an IPS mode has excellent viewing angle property and high luminance since the device can secure a high aperture ratio.